Today's Message Index:
----------------------
0. 10:13 PM - Wiki... (Matt Dralle)
1. 10:23 AM - Re: cowling update (teamgrumman@aol.com)
2. 11:00 AM - Cowling Update (teamgrumman@AOL.COM)
Message 0
| PREVIOUS | Skip to PREVIOUS Message |
| NEXT | Skip to NEXT Message |
| LIST | Reply to LIST Regarding this Message |
| SENDER | Reply to SENDER Regarding this Message |
|
Dear Listers,
I added a new Wiki web site to the Matronics Email List features earlier this year. What's a Wiki, you ask? Well, here's the Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wiki) definition:
A wiki (IPA: [ w .ki ] <WICK-ee> or [ wi .ki ] <WEE-kee>) is a type of Web site
that allows the visitors themselves to easily add, remove, and otherwise edit
and change some available content, sometimes without the need for registration.
This ease of interaction and operation makes a wiki an effective tool for
collaborative authoring. The term wiki also can refer to the collaborative software
itself (wiki engine) that facilitates the operation of such a Web site,
or to certain specific wiki sites, including the computer science site (an original
wiki), WikiWikiWeb, and on-line encyclopedias such as Wikipedia.
Under the Matronics Email List Moniker, there is now a very nice List-specific
Wiki available! It a place for Listers to put articles about any aviation topic
that suits them. The purpose is to provide what the mailing lists do not:
structure and persistence. The mailing lists are a fantastic resource to ask
a question and get good (and bad and funny and annoying) answers. But once the
question is asked and answered it is not in front of the List anymore. If a
new person subscribes the next day, he/she does not see that information unless
he/she goes to the trouble to search the archives, a hit or miss proposition.
The result is that the same thread of conversation gets created and/or revisited.
There are several things that happen as a result:
1. The person gets his or her question answered;
2. The information gets better as more people think about and answer the question;
3. The people who have seen the same question asked and answered get annoyed
at seeing the same things over and over and over and ...
So this is where the Wiki comes in. You know what questions you wanted answered.
You may have asked or answered the question. You know the information is useful.
So you put the information here, in the Matronics Email List Wiki!
It doesn't matter that this information is 100% complete or correct. Just writing
something creates a placeholder and makes useful information available immediately.
It has the same immediacy as the mailing list but it has persistence
and structure.
But what if the information is incomplete or incorrect? No problem! Anyone else
coming along can edit the article! If I write something and you discover something
I have left out or stated incorrectly, you can fix it right then!
So let's begin and make this the place for information about building, flying,
maintaining, and understanding our airplanes.
But what about whether something is "appropriate" or not? Don't worry. Write
it down. Let the reader determine whether or not it is appropriate. If it is,
he/she will read it. If it isn't, he/she won't. It's as simple as that.
And when you do write that article you won't have to worry about whether some editor
is going to decide whether or not to print it in a newsletter or whether
the webmaster will have time to put it up on the web page.
The last question I hear brewing out there is: if anyone can post anything, won't
this just become a mass of garbage? Surprisingly, the answer is a resounding
no. If you want proof, go visit the Wikipedia, a free-to-everyone encyclopedia
written by whoever wants to write articles. The articles there are as good
as anything I have read anywhere and anyone can add anything anytime they want
to.
So don't hesitate. Write it down. Put it here. It will never hurt anyone. The
more information we get here, the more useful it will become to other people
and the more information they will put here for YOU to use.
Here's the URL to start (there are lots more bured under this starting place):
http://www.matronics.com/wiki/index.php/Matronics:Community_Portal
But please don't forget that this Wiki and all of the other Matronics Email List
features are supported solely by YOUR Contributions!! November is List Fund
Raiser month and there are lots of Free Gifts to be had with your qualifying
Contribution. Please make a Contribution to support the continued operation and
upgrade of these great services!!! Thank you!
http://www.matronics.com/contribution
Matt Dralle
Matronics Email List Administrator
Message 1
| INDEX | Back to Main INDEX |
| NEXT | Skip to NEXT Message |
| LIST | Reply to LIST Regarding this Message |
| SENDER | Reply to SENDER Regarding this Message |
|
| Subject: | Re: cowling update |
Mycowling wouldn't fit any engine put on an AA1. I said it would
physically fit the AA1. It's way too long for the AA1.
What are you fighting on the PF installation? I have a customer who
just brought in an AA5 and wants the short stack PF put on it. It
seems to me that it's pretty straight forward. I'll be installing it
in a few days.
As soon as I get the cowling approved for the Tiger, I want to start on
the Traveler. Let's see, how long will it take??? My guess is,
fitting the cowling, making the baffles, and getting the drawings done
will take about a year .... IF I have a plane to work with. Keep in
mind, I also need to run a business and make enough money to pay bills
as well as push several projects forward ... such as: new wheel pants,
new wing tips, fiberglass horizontal root fillets, fiberglass tips for
Traveler, Cheetah, and Tiger horizontal tips, Fiberglass rudder tips,
and a redesigned fiberglass tail cone.
Are you installing the short stack?
Gary
-----Original Message-----
From: aa5_driver@yahoo.com
Sent: Fri, 10 Nov 2006 7:19 AM
Subject: Re: cowling update
Gary,
I bet that cowling on an aa1 with an 0320 would be rather quick. What
would they require you to do make it legal for the aa5? Since the aa5
does not have the tall front baffle like the cheetah, would it be
easier to adapt to the aa5? I have not studied the differences in the
3 front baffles of the series, but know what you are talking about on
the cheetah. I think that your air inlets are still smaller than the
early aa5 openings. Making the cowling an inch narrower would be
great, but I'd bet too costly. I'd agree the modified baffeling would
be the way to go. We are fighting the PF install in that the exit is
located on a tapered transition. The cheetah and tiger are easier to
work with in this area due to the flat exit ramps. Your cowl would
eliminate this problem and clean everything up. What kind of time
frame would be needed to modify, fit, install, and flight test on an
aa5? We'd be very interested to see this get approved for the aa5
sooner than later....
Kevin
teamgrumman@aol.com wrote:
There is very little difference between the exhaust systems used on
the
various AA5x applications. The carburetor inlets on the AA5 and AA5A
are very different than the carburetor inlet on the AA5B. Even the
LoPresti NOSEBOWL is different between the AA5A and AA5B. Physically,
the cowling would fit on an AA1.
The O320 is also an inch narrower than an O360. That means new
baffles, and, of course, a new flight test. The DER suggested I buy an
AA5 and spend the required time to trial fit and finalize the required
changes to make it fit.
For example, the cowling was specifically designed with the Tiger in
mind, since that's what I had to work with. That means that the
cooling air inlets are sized and shaped to fit the O360. Look at any
Cheetah and you'll see a lot more of the front baffles normal (engineer
speak for perpendicular to the incoming air flow) to the incoming inlet
air than you'll see on a Tiger. This greatly f*cks up the incoming
air flow profile. What that means, is that the effective area is a lot
smaller than it would be if the flow were allowed to keep expanding
upon entering the inlet. Ideally, I should completely redesign the
front to narrow the cowling an additional inch at the inlet. What I
will do, is minimize the pressure loss by reshaping the baffles to fit
the narrower O320.
The baffles and inlets are a small, solvable part, of the conversion to
the AA5/AA5A. A bigger problem is getting inlet air into the
carburetor. The space between the bottom of a stock cowling and the
carburetor inlet is not very much. Ask Fred Kokaska. Or John Coze.
Both had to fabricate special carb airboxes to fit into the available
space. I think that is the primary reason why the Tiger was designed
with a rear carb inlet: more room for a well designed inlet. The
design of the stock Tiger airbox, from a pressure recovery and pressure
distribution and uniform airflow into the carburetor is about as
perfect as can be made on an airplane engine. The only other
improvement would be a bell mouthed inlet from the carb to the freshair
side (this would effectively increase the air flow volume by as much as
20%.) If possible, I'd like to find a circular airbox that allowed the
inlet air to enter the carb peripherally that would fit into the
available space (and between the cooling air exit ramps). If I can
find such an airbox, it just might fit the AG5B and then two birds
would be dead. (is that a bad analogy?)
-----Original Message-----
From: aa5_driver@yahoo.com
Sent: Thu, 9 Nov 2006 4:07 PM
Subject: cowling update
Gary,
Doesn't power flow use the same STC for the different aa5models?
They are different applications, and I think they use the same STC,
I'll have to look. If they do, they would have the same issues with
the different engines. What does this mean for the AA5's?????? What
changeswould be required to make it work with the aa5? I thought you
already had the cowling onone.I'd try againto see if there is a way
to do them all as it will make the overall cost lower. We'd be
interested, when they are approved.
Thanks, Kevin
Well, there is good news and bad news.
First, the good news: The DER has finally accepted my drawings and the
stress analysis is done. It looks like the drawings and Project Plan
and Test Plan and PMA paperwork and hell I forget what else, will be
submitted within a few weeks. Finally.
The bad news: I was going to just include all of the planes built
under the AA5, AA5A, AA5B, and AG5B type certificate. Then, one of the
three DERs working on the project said, "I was reading the TCDS (Type
Certificate Data Sheet) and it says the AA5 and AA5A have an O320. Do
you have to change anything to make your cowling work on these planes?"
Ah, well, (dancing as best I could) . . . . Probably. "Then, you'll
have to do those under a different STC, but, now it''l be easier
because you already know what to do."
Bad news continued. "Question." the DER says. "You were telling us
that the AG5B has a carbon fiber cowling. Are there any other
differences between the AA5B and the AG5B?" Ah, well, the inlet air
induction is different. I went on to explain how American General
screwed up the inlet and airbox design. "So, then, it doesn't use the
same airbox as used on an AA5B Tiger?" I told them, "No. ... BUT.... I
could use the AA5B airbox, but I'd have to get used ones or have them
made."
So, unless the AG5B drivers that want my cowling can find an AA5B
airbox, they will have to wait until I get a NEW design approved with a
carb air inlet that can use the AG5B airboxes (2, yes, they have two.)
So, the bill to finish the project is a tad under $10,000.
Any more takers on a PRE-certification sales price of $6,000?
I would imagine the finished cowling will be around $8,000. I'm going
to try and hold the price down.
Gary
--------
Sponsored Link
Get an Online or Campus degree - Associate's, Bachelor's, or Master's
- in less than one year.
________________________________________________________________________
across the web, free AOL Mail and more.
--------
________________________________________________________________________
across the web, free AOL Mail and more.
Message 2
| INDEX | Back to Main INDEX |
| PREVIOUS | Skip to PREVIOUS Message |
| NEXT | Skip to NEXT Message |
| LIST | Reply to LIST Regarding this Message |
| SENDER | Reply to SENDER Regarding this Message |
|
OK, so, no one wants in on the early cowlings. Come on, Get the word
out. Someone must want one of the early cowlings. Just $2,000 down
buys an $8,000 cowling at 25% off.
OK. Well, as soon as I can afford it, I'm going to tackle a parallel
valve IO360 with a constant speed prop. Any takers on that????
________________________________________________________________________
across the web, free AOL Mail and more.
Other Matronics Email List Services
These Email List Services are sponsored solely by Matronics and through the generous Contributions of its members.
-- Please support this service by making your Contribution today! --
|